Ireland's old flaws exposed as Andy Farrell rues lack of belief 

POWERPLAY: Cian Healy, with support from James Ryan, touches down for Ireland’s first try against France in Saturday’s Guinness Six Nations match in Paris. Picture: Sportsfile

Five games into his tenure and Andy Farrell is still grappling with the same problems that have plagued Ireland since their annus mirabilis of 2018.

Failure to execute in big moments and convert opportunities into scores were the hallmarks of the last 12 months of Joe Schmidt’s otherwise spectacular six-year term as Ireland head coach as England, Wales, Japan, and New Zealand ruined best-laid plans for silverware, both in the 2019 Six Nations and the World Cup 12 months ago.